CHIT CHAT: Erin Stulb, Milton Players

Thursday

Last spring, the Milton Players bid a fond farewell to its home of more than 80 years, the Milton Women’s Club. Undaunted, the community theater group went in search of a new home.

Last spring, the Milton Players bid a fond farewell to its home of more than 80 years, the Milton Women’s Club. Undaunted, the community theater group went in search of a new home. The group opens the 2013-14 season this weekend in the Brayton Auditorium at the Massachusetts Hospital School in Canton.

Board member Erin Stulb brings us up to date.

Q: How did you end up in Canton?

A: We were very fortunate. We let our members know that the Women’s Club was going to be sold, and one of them happened to mention she had a friend who was a nurse at the school who said they have a theater that hasn’t really been utilized as much as they would like to see. So we spoke to Brian Devin, chief executive officer at the school. We were fortunate to get approval and began to move in late spring and throughout the summer.

Q: Have you established any programming with the school?

A: We agreed to produce a curriculum piece, something that middle-schoolers would be reading. That’s why we chose to do “The Diary of Anne Frank.” We also offered to do a free performance for staff and students, so there is an invited dress rehearsal we will hold before the show opens to the public, and that will be just for them.

Q: How is the new space working out?

A: It’s a beautiful state-of-the-art facility and they offered us storage, which was very useful for our props and costumes and sets. And there’s lots of parking – that was a challenge in Milton. The acoustics are so much better and we have a lighting control booth. For our cabaret seating, the space is better because it is tiered so there are better sight lines for our patrons. And if we need it, there is regular seating behind the tiers.

Q: So will you change the name?

A: No, there is no plan to change it. We have so much history – 80 years as the Milton Players. It really isn’t that far from the old place, just a 20-minute drive.